By now we probably all know of someone who has died of cancer and are familiar with the painful process. There is a high likelihood that you have contributed some money to help a cancer patient get treatment or know of a WhatsApp group that was created for that particular purpose.
A woman in Georgia, US, was this week arrested and charged with one count of theft by deception after faking cancer diagnosis and raising over Sh1.5million.
Katie Lynn Shellhorse, 22, used social media to drive her campaign and went as far as involving her church and other members of the community to raise money for treatment.
Authorities indicated that she went as far as shaving her hair several times to resemble a cancer patient.
In April, a family member exposed her for lying and revealed that she was using the proceeds of her funds drive to buy marijuana and alcohol.
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According to a statement by the family, Katie was allegedly diagnosed with Peritoneal cancer in July 2020 and they rallied around her.
However, they grew suspicious after a few months since Katie’s doctor never allowed any family member to accompany her during hospital visits.
“Our questions were always answered in detail, but we had no proof of our doubts. We researched and gathered backup information on the doubts as much as we could and we made taking care of the children and keeping them safe our main priority.
“Finally, we felt that we had ample evidence, and with our family’s blessing, filed a police report. Katie’s husband was informed and he confronted her and insisted that she prove her diagnosis. Finally, she admitted that she falsely claimed to have cancer. Her husband insisted that she go to the police department and admit that the report was true,” read the statement in part.
The family apologized to all those who contributed and expressed deep regret that they were dragged into the saga.
Police have asked all those who contributed towards Katie’s kitty to come forth with proof of their donation
